Michael Brown R.I.P.

FEMA chief Michael Brown is returning to Washington, and on-the-ground relief operations will be headed by Coast Guard chief-of-staff Thad Allen.

Comments

[JMoore]

Whoa.

Here comes another flood.....

[GWB]

"Brownie, you did a great job but you just have to go because Karl and Dick said so." G

[joe]

"Ron, Nancy Pelosi brought it up, and I wanted to ask you...did something go wrong last week?"

[Jeff P.]

What can Brown do for you?

[bushwhacked]

It's not clear whether he was fired or not. I still doubt Bush would ever actually fire anyone for incompetance.

[Flyover Country]

bushwhacked,

Does anybody get fired anymore? Nobody at the company I work for ever gets fired. They all decide to "leave to pursue other opportunites" Funny how the individual always makes that
decision late on a Friday afternoon.

I think Mr. Brown will be pursuing other opportunities in the near future.

[BAI]

I noticed that a lot of initial web posts used the word "Fired", but now they're reading "Removed from duties" and "Returned to Washington".

So I have to agree with Bushwhacked, somewhat. I doubt that Bush would fire Brown over the Hurricane. However, the padded resume issue might be an ass-biter ....

[John]

Maybe its because one of the least politically connected people in America and have sour grapes, but I cannot help but despise Michael Brown and the patronage system that put him in as head of FEMA. I had professor at GW who used to say that if you are not qualified to get an entry level position at a federal agency, never fear, you can always later be appointed to run that agency given the right political connections. From reading that Time article, they guy had literally accomplished nothing in his life except float from one politically obtained job to another. There are a thousand ordinary retired police, fire, military officers who are hundred times more qualified for the job than this clown, yet would have never gotten in the front door. What amazes me most is what goes through the minds of the people who get guys like Brown their jobs. My college roommate is a great guy and a smart one too (he is a ancient and medieval philosophy professor), but I would never offer him up to be the chief of some important federal agency. How can you in good conscience put a manifestly incompetent person into such an important job no matter how well you know him? I guess they don't have a conscience, which is why I am not in government.

[isildur]

I think this is just a way to get Brown offstage, out of the spotlight, so that they can fire him or give him a medal or whatever, without impacting Bush's credibility too much.

It's classic GWB: never admit to having made a mistake. Take long, ridiculous, circuitous measures to avoid admitting fault.

[xray]

Flyover Country: Same where I work. Friday afternoon is always the time people seem to decide to pursue other opportunities. Except for that one guy a couple of years ago who was committing fraud, faking his CV, and basically lying abt everything. He was fired.

[George Steinbrenner]

Fire the coach and let him take all the blame, works for me.

[bushwhacked]

"From reading that Time article, they guy had literally accomplished nothing in his life except float from one politically obtained job to another."

Was that on the Bush family or Brown?

[John]

Also, as much as I enjoy kicking this guy around, it shouldn't overshadow who really responsible for this mess, the manifestly incompetent Lousianna state and local governments. From UPI today:

"'We shut down the bridge,' Arthur Lawson, chief of the City of Gretna Police Department, confirmed to United Press International, adding that his jurisdiction had been "a closed and secure location" since before the storm hit.

"All our people had evacuated and we locked the city down," he said. The bridge in question -- the Crescent City Connection -- is the major artery heading west out of New Orleans across the Mississippi River.

He added that the small town, which he called "a bedroom community" for the city of New Orleans, would have been overwhelmed by the influx. "There was no food, water or shelter" in Gretna City, Lawson said. "We did not have the wherewithal to deal with these people. If we had opened the bridge, our city would have looked like New Orleans does now: looted, burned and pillaged."

Yeah, racist cops shutting down bridges leaving poor black people to die. In Louisianna? Never!! Its all George Bush's fault!!

[Don Mynack]

Wow. The angry congresspersons got their lamb. I hope everybody feels all better now.

[mediageek]

It's classic GWB: never admit to having made a mistake. Take long, ridiculous, circuitous measures to avoid admitting fault.

Of course GWB is never wrong. God is guiding his hand, and if GWB were wrong, what would that say about God?

[John]

Bushwacked,

The difference between Brown and Bush is that Bush has managed to be a very successful politician and consistently hand his political opponents their ass for the last ten years. Some of that of course is due to being excedingly lucky about who is enemies are, as is evidenced daily on the coment threads on Reason.

[MP]

The difference between Brown and Bush is that Bush has managed to be a very successful politician and consistently hand his political opponents their ass for the last ten years.

It didn't hurt that his father was George Herbert Walker Bush.

[Mr. Nice Guy]

I've said this on another thread.. I want to see Brownie drunk, unshaven, and on a rant on live TV. Hey, if you're going to go down, go down swing'n!

[Mike H.]

Some of that of course is due to being excedingly lucky about who is enemies are, as is evidenced daily on the coment threads on Reason.

Haha, no shit.

[bushwhacked]

Here's the spin, Brown was going to leave anyways after the hurricane season was over:

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Katrina-Brown.html?hp

[mediageek]

Oooooh, look at John, everyone!

We're so lucky that he deigns to grace us with his ebullient, illuminating presence.

John, you're so great, I live to bask in the glow of your intellectually superior discharges of epiphany-inducing awesomeness.

[George Bush]

Brownie:

You're doing a heck of a job! Really! First rate!

But if I don't have your resignation letter on my desk by COB today I'm going to feed you to the alligators.

your pal,
George

[ErrinF]

Brownie: Well, here I am, moved out of my FEMA position because too many people died due to my failure to do my job competently...

Condi: Well, here I am, moved out of my NSA position because too many people died due to my failure to do my job competently...

[Michael Brown]

But if I don't have your resignation letter on my desk by COB today I'm going to feed you to the alligators.

but Boss,

Thanks to the lack of response from my agency, the alligators have been feeding on the carcasses of victims for a week. Very satiated!

Can I keep my job? Please? PLEEEEEEAAAAASSSSEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!????

your local sycophant,
Mike

[George Bush]

Brownie:

No.

Now go back to your previous job of feeling horses' balls.

toodles,
George

[Don Rumsfeld]

Brownie, Don't worry too much. You haven't been fired and there's really no amount of incompetence that will result in you being fired. Come back to Washington and relax. Many times I thought I was a goner but here I am 5 years later.

[April]

We wish him the best in his future endeavors.

There are sure to be other spots to which he can be promoted.

[Joe]

I don't know about you all but I think we need to put career Military people in charge of FEMA who can manage and execute.

This guys can work effectively under such a stressfull job and it is; get a military guy to run FEMA as well as DHS.

[joe]

I don't think Chief Lawson is incompetant, John.

I think he set a mission for himself, established policies, and saw that they were carried out in an extremely effective manner.

White hooded p.o.s.

[G.W. Bush]

I hear there's a Supreme Court vacancy. I think Brownie would make a terrific Justice!

[Tom Crick]

"Also, as much as I enjoy kicking this guy around, it shouldn't overshadow who really responsible for this mess, the manifestly incompetent Lousianna state and local governments."

I blame the hippies.

[Stevo Darkly]

I think Mr. Brown will be pursuing other opportunities in the near future.

Perhaps he wishes to spend more time with his family.

[moonbiter]

He's returning to get his Presidential Medal of Freedom.